THE 'SOLE' OF BAGHDAD

Breakfast on a monday morning is usually a very sombre affair for me, considering that i nearly always drag myself out of the bed after previous night of revelry. but on 15/12/08, Monday, 10:00 a.m. my toast flew out of my hand as i saw, the president of USA, Mr george Bush dodging shoes in a press conference. I stared and started rubbing my eyes (my eye liner and mascara totally forgotten) and stared again. yes sir, it was happening and our 24 hour news channels who thrive on such stuff had a gala time replaying it over and over again.

Mr George Bush, while addressing a press conference, was suddenly greeted by a shoe being flung at him. Not once but twice. A bizzare incident no doubt. But equally amazing was the way Bush dogded and ducked the "weapons" hurled at him. He showed remarkable restraint and even displayed that incorrigible nerdy side of his when he said, "all i can tell you was that it was size 10". well, thats Mr bush for us!!!!

Now coming to the man who dared to boot Bush. He is a relatively unknown young man by the name of Muntazer al Zaidi, working in Iraq.As he flung his shoes, al Zaidi shouted in Arabic, " This is a gift from the Iraqis. This is a farewell kiss, you dog." The man was pinned down and dragged away from the room while he kept mothinh obscenities against our Dubya. Last heard, the young man was cooling his heels in the jail and was being interrogated.

Well, I am too shocked even to comment on this. I mean how often have you seen heads of state being greeted by shoes? I cant think of any. And to be honest, its a little difficult to digest. Hurling shoes at anybody is considered an insult in the Muslim world and I'm sure pretty much the same all over the world.

What could have prompted the young man to take such an extreme step?Could it be the continuous bleeding of the country that was once Iraq? Perhaps an illegal war searching for some apparent weapons of mass destruction? Atrocities at Abu Gharib jail? Mindless killings of innocent people? Need i say more? The man has not only displayed his angst publically but has also managed to draw attention to the plight of ordinary Iraqis, their anger and resentment at the outrageous war ravaging country. I hail the youngman for his guts but I wish he could have found another way to express his anger.

It sure sucks to be Mr George Bush at this moment!!!!!!
Check out this video. its really hilarious!!!!!!